Gerda Henkel General Research Grants: Projects

The grants for research projects involve, depending on the type of project, the assumption of costs for personnel, travel, materials and/or other costs.
Project staff on research projects may only be financed by PhD or research grants. A fundamental prerequisite for a grant is that project staff conduct their own research, which is published under their name. The simultaneous receipt of salary or retirement pension and a research scholarship is not possible.
The period of support for Foundation stipend holders working on Ph.D. or research projects can be extended by up to 12 months if the holder becomes a parent during the period covered by the stipend and has an entitlement to maternity or parental leave. Individual arrangements must be discussed with the Foundation’s administrative office.
Application documents
From now on, it is only possible to apply electronically for the general research grants. The necessary application documents can be uploaded in the electronic application form.
The following documents must be included in an application for a research project (in German or English):
- description of the research proposal (max. 8 pages)
- plus bibliography if necessary (in addition to the max. 8 pages)
- at least font size 11 and line spacing 1.5
- please choose a readable font, e.g. Arial 11 pt. or Times New Roman 12 pt.
- time schedule, travel itinerary (if needed)
- detailed cost calculation
- specific funds being applied for must be precisely defined
- no college or tuition fees
- no overhead costs
- curriculum vitae and list of publications of the applicant(s)
- if needed, curriculum vitae and list of publications of the proposed project participant(s)
- if needed, academic certificates of the project participant(s) (Masters, PhD, professorship, etc.; please do not send Bachelor certificates)
If also a scholarship for the applicant is planned:
- one letter of recommendation
- signed personally by the author
- upload via the online recommendation form
- possibility to submit more than one letter of recommendation
- academic certificates of the applicant (Masters, PhD, professorship, etc.; please do not send Bachelor certificates)
- please take note of our criteria regarding the applications for a research scholarship: Continue
Please do not additionally send the documents by email or postal mail.
Payment
PhD scholarships
Monthly scholarship award: 1,600 euros
• for one child: EUR 400
• each further child: EUR 100
The family grant is awarded for children who have not yet turned 18.
Monthly endowment for scholarships abroad: 400 euros
Travel aid: as required
Material aid: as required
Research scholarships for postdocs
Monthly scholarship award: 2,300 euros
• for one child: EUR 400
• each further child: EUR 100
The family grant is awarded for children who have not yet turned 18.
Monthly endowment for scholarships abroad: 575 euros
Travel aid: as required
Material aid: as required
Research scholarships after post doctoral lecture qualification
Monthly scholarship award: 3,100 euros
The higher grant rate is approved after successful conclusion of the professorial examinations (habilitation) process and/or alternatively at the earliest after positive interim evaluation for a junior professorship. For applicants from academic systems that do not envisage habilitations, the Foundation recognizes holding a tenured position as an associate professor or as a full professor or distinguished professor (in the US system) or as a senior lecturer or as a reader/professor (in the Commonwealth system) as an equivalent of passing junior professorial examinations. The administration of the Foundation can in individual cases assess other national qualification levels.
• for one child: EUR 400
• each further child: EUR 100
The family grant is awarded for children who have not yet turned 18.
Monthly endowment for scholarships abroad: 775 euros
Travel aid: as required
Material aid: as required
Contracts for work may be awarded for smaller research activities. The Foundation specifies no rates in this regard.
Deadlines
The Foundation committees meet twice a year to consider the applications and decide on funding grants. The application deadline for the Foundation committees spring meeting in 2024 is 22 November 2023. Applications have to be in the Foundation's office by this day. The Foundation committees are holding their meeting in April 2023. If your application is successful, funding can start at the beginning of May 2024 at the very earliest.
The next deadline is expected to be May 2024. The exact date will be published after the November 2023 deadline.
The deadline is not valid for smaller funding amounts (max. 25,000 euros). Smaller funding amounts are granted by the Foundation through a simplified procedure with a deliberation time of approximately three to four months. Please follow the exact same application procedure for smaller funding amounts as for regular research scholarships.
Form
Electronic Application Form for the Foundation:
- Please complete the application form in full.
- The application form can be saved at any time. Using your own personal link, you can return to and edit the form for a period of ten days. However, after this period (10 Days), your data will be deleted from the server.
- Once you have completed the form, you will receive a short summary, which needs to be confirmed in order to be sent to the Foundation electronically.
- During the transmission process your data will be sent to the Foundation in electronic form. Confirmation of receipt will be sent to the e-mail address provided in the application.
Please follow these rules when uploading your application files:
- All documents need to be uploaded as pdf-files.
- Please do not upload protected PDF documents.
- A single file may not exceed a file size of 6 MB each.
- You cannot upload more than one document per upload field.
- The application can only be sent, if all necessary documents are included.
Please note the following additional information:
- Your data will be stored by the Gerda Henkel Foundation for the purpose of processing your application and will not be passed on to third parties.
- The Gerda Henkel Foundation will be happy to provide you with information about the data that we have stored on your person at any time. If so required, personal data can be changed or deleted.
- This form may only be used to make an application to the Gerda Henkel Foundation. The Foundation reserves the right to delete application data without prior notification, if necessary.
Publishing Aid
Publishing aid is currently only awarded to especially successful projects already being supported by the Foundation. Please include the following documents:
- two-page summary of the academic merit and innovativeness of the monograph/collection
- cost calculation by the publishing house
- manuscript on which the calculations have been made (digital)
A copy of the (preliminary) PhD certificate should be included in proposals submitted for the publication of PhD theses supported by the Gerda Henkel Foundation.
Applications can be submitted at any time.
Contact person General Research Grants: Scholarships
Anna Kuschmann, M.A.
Project Manager General Research and PhD Grants
– PhD Scholarships and Research Grants, Publishing Aid, Fellowships –
kuschmann@gerda-henkel-stiftung.de